The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-01-11
A JUDICIAL MURDER.


lin, merchant, Lampert by name, mar
ried to "A wife somewhat younger than him
self-a handsome worlail, fond of dress and
amusement. And by her he had a daugh-
ter, whom the vain mother did her best to
spoil.
Every year Lampert went to the Leipsic
fair ON business, and in the year l13O he
resolved, usual, to attend the fair.
On the evening before he was about to
start he called his wife into their common
bedchamber, and asked her to assist him
I'm counting his money, which he kept in
a strong iron double locked Golfer beneath
his bed.
He always carried his keys about with
him, never laying them aside. His wife at
his summons came with a candle into the
room, and he unlocked the chest in her pres
ence, and brought out his money to the
table, where he purposed counting it and
taking from it tho sum necessary for his
travelling expenses and for the purchases he
intended making at the Leipsic fair.
The box contained a large purse of leather,
wrapped round with cord and sealed with
his own signet. The coin it contained con-
sisted Of French pistoles with the exception
of six Dutch ducats.
Lampert found the lock untampered with
and the leather purse as he had left it,
bound with the string and with his seal I'M
broken-in a word, all was in the condi-
tion i'll which he had left it, except the con
tents of the purse. As he counted the money
in the presence of his wife, twelve pistoles
aud one of the six ducats were missing.
This discovery filed him and his wife with
dismay. They counted the money again,
they searched every corner of the box,
turned the bag inside out, but could not
discover the SMALLEST trace of the missing
coins. Lampert had written ticket of
the amount, when he had inclosed it in the
bag, before he sealed it up. How had the
money been distracted without breaking
the seals and getting the keys from the mer-
chant2
The room occupied by Lampert and his
wife was so situated that no stranger could
have entered il unobserved during the day,
and il was quite certain that no robbers had
broken in during the night.
When the couple had recovered from their
first astonishment they considered who
could have done the deed, and they could
think of no one at all likely to be guilty of
the theft, except their housemaid, Marie
Keller, a young woman OF 70.
The merchant at once summoned her to
the room and charged her with having
stolen the money. He promised her II she
would confess and make restitution that he
would forgive her. and though he would dis
miss her from his service he would hush
the matter up. The girl trembled and
nearly tainted, but protested her limo
cence. and SO resolutely refused to allow
her guilt that Lampert and his wife insisted
on examining her bedroom, They made
her lead the way with a candle and stand in
the middle of the room .hile her master
and mistress explored every corner, her
boxes, her bed, her drawers-in a word,
every hiding place where she could have
slowed away the missing coins.
The search had lasted some time without
producing any result when Frau Lampert,
feeling in the pocket of an old ragged dress
that law ON the floor, drew forth one of the
Dutch ducats. When this was discovered
Marie Keller burst into tears, and with We
hemence reasserted her innocence. She fell
on her knees before her master and mistress,
vowed that she had not taken any coin
from their Golfer and declared her inabil-
ity to account for the ducat having been
found in her pocket in any other way than
by surprising some malevolent person had
put il there to inculpate her, when she was
as guiltless as a newborn child. Her pro
tests were coldly listened to and disregarded.
The evidence of the ducat in her pocket
seemed conclusive to Lampert that she and
no stranger had robbed him.
According to Prussian law at the time
those guilty OF theft hanged IL the
value of the articles stolen amounted to five
thalers-or fifteen shillings-and the thief
was more than Is years old.
Lampert seems to have been a hard man.
He was very angry at the loss of his money
and especially incensed at Marie's obstjuacy
in denying having taken il. He told his
wife that he would communicate with the
police, have the girl arrested and that he
would let her suffer the consequences
Frau Lalnpert urged him to be merciful
Let him pardon this first error in the poor
girls conduct, dismiss her and try to forget
De- q 10, stia.l
Then she urged that the law was cruelty
severe, and that the sum ~ money lost was
not one so great but that L-ampert would
scarcely feel it, and that he would be GER
tain later, to regret his harshness in giving
over to death girl vino had yielded TO "a
first ptation, and had taken compare
lively Insignificant sum OF money.
lie knew that 1t was possible TO closely
Reproduce IA signct with bread, but this re-
quuires considerable time. The bread must
be well worked, the impression taken
while thc bread is soft; then it must be al
lowed sorne days in which to harden. This
involved double opening OF his chest, once
TO take tho cast of the seal and again TO
steal TIE money and reseal the bag. But
how had Marie got hold Of his keys, That
was impossible. If. however, she could
take tbs Impress of his seal. she could take
also that OF the lock. SO, he reasoned, the
ToOotty hSii Dren cOti.anlttctl, Dut tnl-
means adopted showed that the girl was
adroit in the art, and that in all probability
she belonged To a gang of thieves. This
suspicion was corrobornted by the fact that
mono Of tho money was recovered except one
ducat. Tho rest she had passed into the
hands Of her confederates.
Lampcrt, having turned a deaf ear to his
wifes circumstances, went To the magis-
tratc, obtained an order for the arrest OF
Marie Keller. and a few hours later she was
thrown into prison.
No sooner was this done than Frau Lam.
pert sent TO Marie's mother, u POOR woman
living III Berlin, and requested that she
would come to her. The poor woman Wa
in great trouble; she could not believe in
her daughters guilt, but was unable &c
guess who WAS the thief. Frau Iamper,
told her that the girl had been a good ser
want, and had never hitherto given her an